Psych Exam: 4/23

Divergent Thinking

expanding the number of possible problem solutions; creative thinking that diverges in different directions

Convergent Thinking

narrowing the available problem solutions to determine the single best solution

representativeness heuristic

judging the likelihood of events in terms of how well they seem to represent, or match, particular prototypes, lead us to ignore other relevant information

availability heuristic

judging the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory, we presume such events are common

framing

the way an issue is posed; how an issue is framed can significantly affect decisions and judgments

nudge

framing choices in a way that encourages people to make beneficial decisions

priming

the activation, often unconsciously, of particular associations in memory

visuospatial sketchpad

a memory component that briefly holds information about objects' appearance and location in space

heuristic

a simple thinking strategy - a mental shortcut - that often allows us to make judgments and solve problems efficiently; speedier but also more error-prone than an algorithm

gestalt

an organized whole, pieces of information become meaningful wholes

figure-ground

the organization of the visual field into objects (the figures) that stand out from their surroundings (the ground)

grouping

the perceptual tendency to organize stimuli into coherent groups

assimilation

taking in new information into our already existing schemas, no change to the person's current interpretation of reality

ex: might call an animal a dog first

accommodation

changing existing schemas when we gain new information, may develop as a result of the changes, a person's perception of reality is adjusted

ex: incorporate knowledge to the existing schema

state-dependent memory

when people are better able to recall information when they are in the same physical or emotional state as when the memory was formed

ex: drinking coffee while studying for exam, perform better when drinking coffee

mood-congruent memory

our current mood can influence the type of memories we recall, ex: recall other positive memories when happy

multi-store model

information-processing model

encode -> store -> retrieve

effortful processing

requires attention and conscious effort to encode memories, facts/experiences

automatic processing

unconscious encoding of incidental information (space, time, frequency, and of familiar or well learned information), produces implicit memories

misinformation effect

occurs when a memory has been corrupted by misleading information

source amnesia

faulty memory for how, when, or where information was learned or imagines (as when misattributing information to a wrong source)

enconding

the process of getting information into the memory system, by extracting meaning

storage

the process of retaining encoded information over time

retrieval

the process of getting information out of memory storage

memory

the persistence of learning over time through the encoding, storage, and retrieval of information

inattentional blindness

failing to see visible objects when our attention is directed elsewhere

change blindness

failing to notice changes in the environment, a form of inattentional blindness

perceptual constancy

perceiving objects as unchanging even as illumination and retinal images change

binocular cue

a depth cue, such as retinal disparity that depends on the use of two eyes

retinal disparity

a binocular cue for perceiving depth

convergence

a cue to nearby objects' distance, enabled by the brain combining retinal images

grouping

the perceptual tendency to organize stimuli into coherent groups

proximity

grouping nearby figures together

continuity

perceiving smooth, continuous patterns, rather than discontinuous ones

closure

filling in gaps to create a whole object